Various devices have been used to remove snow or ice deposits from motor vehicles. As depicted in FIG. 1, U.S. Pat. No. 4,321,724 issued to Samuels is directed to a snow removal device 10' that can facilitate the removal of snow accumulations from motor vehicle surfaces. More specifically, the device of Samuels has a sweeping head 11' which is secured to a handle 12'. The sweeping head 11' can thus be manipulated by a user to reciprocate along the handle axis or swing from side-to-side and thereby remove snow accumulation from a motor vehicle.
The designs of such conventional snow removal devices limit their use to motor vehicles that have a height within the user's reach. For over-sized motor vehicles such as heavy trucks, conventional snow removal devices are unable to access roof surfaces to remove snow therefrom.
It is often necessary to remove snow or ice accumulations from truck roofs since the heavy accumulations thereon can be hazardous to other motor vehicles or pedestrians. In certain states, such as New Jersey, motorists are now held liable if flying ice or snow from their vehicles causes death, injury or property damage.
Therefore, it is desirable to remove snow or ice deposits from motor vehicle roofs before the vehicle is put in use. The present invention provides a snow removal apparatus that can meet the above requirement.